I was first introduced to the Sig P290 a
little over a year ago while attending
a Compact Pistol Class at Gunsite in Arizona. In that class,
we had the opportunity to handle and fire a variety of small
pistols, mostly chambered for the 9x19mm cartridge, and we had
the chance to use them both during the daytime and also at
night. Some of the pistols at the event ran really well, while
others did not function well at all. It was my first opportunity
to fire the little Sig, and I was anxious to do so, as were
several others at the event. All present were experienced
shooters, and were glad that the Sig folks had brought their new
pocket gun for us to enjoy. That P290 functioned pretty well,
but most of us agreed that it could be improved a bit. The
little Sig had a hammer, but needed the slide to pre-cock the
action, similar to many striker-fired pistols. The trigger pull,
while smooth, was pretty heavy. Anyway, I liked the little P290
enough to start begging for a test gun, but the folks at Sig
decided to make some changes, and I was happy to wait for the
revised version of the P290. It has finally arrived, and there
was enough improvement over the original that it was well worth
the wait.

The most notable improvement is in the
trigger. The P290RS now has re-strike capability (hence the RS
designation), meaning that the slide does not have to be moved
to preset the trigger to fire. The new trigger is a simple DAO
(double-action only), meaning that a pull of the trigger both
cocks and releases the hammer to fire the cartridge. The trigger
pull on my test gun averages 7.3 pounds of resistance on my
Lyman gauge, and it feels closer to five pounds, as it is
butter-smooth and easy to reach. The trigger pull on the P290RS
is now perfect for a hideout pistol.

Sig has fitted an excellent set of sights to
this pistol. Both are adjustable for windage by drifting in
their slide dovetails, and front sights of differing heights are
offered to adjust for elevation, if desired. Both sights have
tritium inserts within the white dots, for use in low-light
situations. The slide lock lever has been slightly
re-shaped, and the protrusion of the magazine release has been
reduced to avoid the chance of accidentally dropping the
magazine.

The P290RS magazines are made of steel, and
the standard magazine has a six-round capacity for a total
loaded payload of seven cartridges. The P290RS is also shipped
with an eight-round magazine that protrudes below the grip to
provide a better hold on the weapon, in addition to the
one-third greater capacity.

The rear of the polymer frame has been
slightly re-contoured to provide a bit more of a beavertail to
protect the firing hand from slide and hammer bite, and it also
just feels better in my hand than did the original P290. In
fact, it feels much better to me. I was a bit disappointed in
the feel and ergonomics of the original, but the RS, with the
altered frame and the slight finger extension on the magazine
base make a world of difference to my hand.

The P290RS has a solid feel to it, though it
has a lightweight polymer frame. There is enough steel in this
pistol to give it a good heft, yet it weighs barely over twenty
ounces. The stainless slide wears a tough Nitron black finish,
which matches the frame perfectly. The P290 is small, barely
bigger but a bit heavier than the best of the compact 380 pocket
pistols. While some of the latest generation of small 9mm
pistols do not qualify as pocket pistols, the P290RS does. It is
small enough to ride well in a pants pocket, and still come out
quickly when needed. However, most will choose to carry this
little Sig in a belt holster, and if you are right-handed, you
are in luck, as Sig provides a very good Kydex paddle holster
with the P290RS.

Critical specifications for the Sig Sauer
P290RS are listed in the chart below. Weights are listed in
ounces. Linear dimensions are listed in inches. Trigger pull is
listed in pounds of resistance, as measured with my Lyman
digital trigger pull gauge. Height includes sights and magazine
base with the six-shot magazine in place, with the flat mag base
plate. Maximum width is measured across the top of the frame,
and includes the slide lock.

Chambering

9x19mm

Weight with Empty Magazine

20.6 oz.

Trigger Pull

7.3 lbs.

Barrel Length

2.97"

Barrel Diameter

0.552"

Overall Height

4.15"

Overall Length

5.56"

Grip Thickness

0.895"

Frame Width

0.936"

Slide Width

0.938"

Maximum Width

1.05"

Trigger Reach

2.56"

Magazine Capacity

6 or 8

Magazines Supplied

2

Accessory Rail

Proprietary Laser Mount

I fired every type of 9x19mm
ammunition that I had available to me over the chronograph to
check velocities, with the results listed in the chart below.
Velocities are listed in feet-per-second. Bullet weights are
listed in grains. JHP is a jacketed hollowpoint bullet. DPX,
Buffalo Bore Lead Free, and Double Tap Tac-XP are hollow nose
homogenous copper bullets that are made by Barnes Bullets. Guard
Dog is a FMJ with a soft plastic core to promote rapid
expansion. FP is a frangible, pre-fragmented flatnose bullet.
FMJ is a full metal jacket roundnose bullet. FMJ-FN is a full
metal jacket flat nose Buffalo Bore Penetrator bullet. PB is Pow’RBall,
a specialty bullet from Cor-Bon. Glaser is a pre-fragmented
bullet. Velocities were taken at an elevation of 541 feet above
sea level, with an air temperature of seventy-three degrees
Fahrenheit, and a relative humidity of forty-four percent.
Velocities were recorded at ten feet from the muzzle.

Ammunition

Bullet Weight

Velocity

Buffalo Bore Lead Free
HP

95

1426

Buffalo Bore Lead Free
HP

115

1214

Buffalo Bore FMJ-FN

124

1221

Buffalo Bore JHP

115

1280

Buffalo Bore +P JHP

115

1309

Buffalo Bore +P JHP

147

1054

Federal Guard Dog

105

1175

Double Tap Tac-HP

115

1084

Double Tap FMJ

147

1012

Atomic HP

124

1119

WCC NATO FMJ

124

998

Fiocchi FMJ

115

1033

Cor-Bon Glaser

80

1556

Cor-Bon JHP

115

1289

Cor-Bon Pow’RBall

100

1270

Cor-Bon +P DPX

115

1171

Cor-Bon JHP

125

1266

Stryker JHP

115

978

International Cartridge
FP

100

1046

Stryker FMJ

115

1001

Functioning was almost perfect. On the second
round fired from this pistol, the empty case did not extract.
After that, everything fed to the little pistol ran perfectly. I
had one bad cartridge that would not fire later in my testing,
but it was a commercial reload, and certainly no fault of the
Sig. The little P290RS was surprisingly easy and pleasant to
shoot, much more so than the original P290 that I tried fourteen
months ago. The ergonomics of this little RS are ideal for my
hand. Recoil was easy to control, even with Buffalo Bore +P+
ammunition. The slight finger extension, reworked backstrap, and
perfectly-textured grip area made the P290RS easy to grasp,
without being abrasive to the hand.

Accuracy was very good. I made no attempt to
bench test the little Sig, as I do not do that with pocket
pistols. Instead, I fired the Sig at various distances while
using a two-hand hold and standing erect like a primate. Firing
at distances from five to twenty-five yards, the human
silhouette target was mine. The shots never strayed from the
kill zone, and even rapid fire at close range proved the
handling qualities and excellent sights of this little Sig.

One load that performed really well in this
P290RS, and the one that I would choose to carry, is the Buffalo
Bore Lead Free 95 grain hollowpoint. This load is really smoking
out of the Sig, and recoil is very manageable. These all-copper
hollow-nose bullets expend quickly, but do not come apart as do
some lightweight pistol bullets, holding together for good
penetration.

The littlest 9mm pistol from Sig is a good
one. I think that the folks at Sig Sauer made to right decision
to rework their P290, and the resulting P290RS is one of the
best sub-compact 9x19mm pistols currently on the market.